In the Dathomiri witches' culture, the Nightsister shaman was an elder Nightsister who was thought to have access to, and influence in, the world of the spirits. They worshipped the nature's balance and interpreted the nature of the dark side of the Force from a specific religious and cultural point of view.
Early Dathomiri shamans
The shaministic beliefs on Dathomir predated the coming of the exiled Jedi Allya around 600 BBY. Indeed, both male and female shamans and seers from this obscure planet were known to be amongst the founders of the Je'daii Order circa 36,453 BBY. These shamans were identified by a green inverted triangle marked on their forehead. The early Dathomiri seers were already skilled in animal friendship, as they had successfully domesticated mount rancors millennia before the coming of Allya. Their practices survived and probably merged with Allya's Jedi teachings, which gave birth to the Dathomiri Witches' unique culture. After the coming of Allya, the culture of Dathomir became a female-dominant society of Force-wielding females only, which explains the disappearance of male shamans.
After the death of the self-appointed Queen Zalem in 31 BBY, Mother Talzin, a powerful shaman, rose to power and united the fighting Nightsister covens. She remained Dathomir's head shaman until the Clone Wars.
Shamans were usually "called" or designated by signs in their early life. Talzin described how she took the mantle after being saved by the spirits during childbirth. Struck with a fatal affliction while she was birthing her first daughter, Talzin professed she "saw the matching landscapes of the two realms." As she had passed their challenge, the spirits restored her health, and Talzin willingly became their conduit. From this moment on, the spirits would "pull upon the folds of her robe" as she walked and "echo beneath her voice" when she spoke—which explains her eerie voice and slithering moves.
The shaman acted as a medium between the concrete and the spirit worlds, mostly through dreams or visions. The voices of the spirits echoed whenever the shaman spoke, and challenging a shaman's authority was challenging the spirits of life themselves. They would also use their magick in hopes of unfogging the future, with the help of mysterious artifacts such as crystal balls.
The shaman was also expert at manipulating spirit ichor, a glowing green smoke channeled from the Winged Goddess that was used to heal or even conjure solid items.
Apart from her ability to communicate with the other realm, the Nightsister shaman was also the craftswoman and keeper of the artifacts. Apparently, all Nightsister talismans and other Force-imbued items belonged to the community and were placed under the authority of the shaman. Indeed, the witches had to borrow the artifacts and return them afterwards. When Charal turned her back on her sisters and left Dathomir, she secretly stole the Talisman of the Raven. Many years later, in her manifesto Wild Power, clan shaman Talzin complained about "one of the sisters" never returning the talisman. Some of the most precious artifacts, like the Talisman of Resurrection, were guarded jealously by the shamans, and other sisters were rarely allowed to borrow them.
In an interview with the famous fan website TheForce.net, Daniel Wallace, author of the Book of Sith: Secrets from the Dark Side, compared the Nightsister shamans like Mother Talzin with Wiccan witches.
- Book of Sith: Secrets from the Dark Side